The Little Life of a Big Landlord

Chapter 50 Follow-up Move

Yang Ming and Xiao Bao'er sat together on the kang (a heated brick bed) watching TV. On the kang table was a large tray of clean grapes, apples, and other fruits. While watching TV, the two of them kept talking, spitting grape skins all over the room. The budgie hanging on the clothesline would occasionally imitate the voices coming from the TV, and it did so quite well.

"I will definitely come back..." Tiger imitated the voice from the TV. This episode of "Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf" ended, and a big plum blossom mark appeared on the screen. In the plum blossom mark, there was a rather cartoonish "The End".

squeak...

The door opened, and Wei Qingqing's listless voice came in: "I'm back..."

"Ah! The Big Bad Wolf is coming..." Xiao Bao'er cried out in surprise and crawled behind Yang Ming to hide.

"What's wrong? Why are you so listless?" Wei Qingqing lifted the curtain and came in. Her listless appearance surprised Yang Ming. She was fine when he left.

"Zheng Yu is going to have a child!" Wei Qingqing said in a muffled voice as she sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

"You're pregnant so soon? That's great news..." Yang Ming said excitedly upon hearing that Zheng Yu was going to have a child. In truth, Yang Ming deserves some credit for Zheng Yu's pregnancy.

"Are you really stupid or just pretending?" Wei Qingqing yelled at Yang Ming. "Have you ever thought about whether Zheng Yu's parents can handle this blow? If anything bad happens to them, can you live with peace of mind for the rest of your life?" She knew Yang Ming's personality very well; he was just a pushover. If he indirectly caused the death of two elderly people, he would never have a peaceful life.

"Is that all you're talking about? That's quite a problem. But it's alright, there's always a way out. We'll figure out a way to keep it from them when the time comes," Yang Ming said with a smile.

"How can you hide it? The child is missing, can you really keep it a secret?" Wei Qingqing was getting irritated. The thought of two poor elderly people possibly dying because of her husband made her feel suffocated. If that day really came, how much pressure would Yang Ming have to bear? Would he become the second Zheng Yu? It's all uncertain. This guy is too stupid. Why did you have to meddle in other people's business?

The thought that Yang Ming might be so devastated that he would never recover made Wei Qingqing feel extremely distressed.

"Hmph, actually, I started planning my escape route the moment I gave Zheng Yu the idea. After the baby is born, we'll discuss it with Zheng Yu. We'll organize a senior citizens' tour group in the village and take the village's elderly to travel around the famous mountains and rivers of our country for a month. We can do it without them knowing, right?"

"They're not coming back? They'll find out anyway when they do!" Wei Qingqing's forehead veins were bulging. This idea was incredibly stupid.

"You really think Uncle Zheng and the others will keep the child? If they had that intention, wouldn't they have adopted one from an orphanage after all these years? Even if they're old now and really want to keep the child, we could give them a heads-up, reveal that the child is Zheng Yu's, and then subtly intervene... Our goal is to resolve the conflict between the two families, not to encourage parents to abandon their infants."

Hearing Yang Ming's words, Wei Qingqing breathed a slight sigh of relief, but she was still a little worried: "What if Uncle Zheng and the others find out the child is Zheng Yu's and strangle the child to death?"

"What nonsense are you talking about? Have you been watching too many TV dramas? Do you think Uncle Zheng and Aunt Zheng are those kinds of people?" Yang Ming glanced at Wei Qingqing.

"This kind of thing is a delicate task to handle. You won't mess it up, will you?" Wei Qingqing asked gently.

"We need Zheng Yu's cooperation. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, we'll talk to him. Although he's not mentally sound, he's a good person and definitely doesn't want anything bad to happen to his parents. He killed Grandpa Zheng's son, does he want to kill his parents too?"

"What you said makes some sense, but I still feel that the senior citizen tour group thing you mentioned is unreliable. Communication is so convenient these days, can you really keep a secret from people? Besides, their grandson was just born, maybe they don't even want to go on a trip yet, they just want to stay home and hold their grandson."

"Well... let's figure something out. It would be great if Zheng Yu's baby was twins."

"You're talking nonsense. What's wrong with twins? It would be heartbreaking to lose one of them." Wei Qingqing rolled her eyes at Yang Ming and said irritably.

"If all else fails, we can give each of them a cell phone and have Zheng Yu send his parents a picture of the child every day. Wouldn't that work?" Yang Ming said after thinking for a moment.

"If Zheng Yu's child goes missing, the whole village will know. If even one person in the senior citizen tour group knows, then all the old men and women will know too!"

"Are you stupid? Why don't I just go to the service center after they leave and suspend all their phones for a month? Only Zheng Yu's parents' phones will work..."

"Just as unethical as the idea you gave Zheng Yu..." Wei Qingqing laughed, but then she thought of something else, "Wait a minute, don't they know how to use a public phone?"

"Then I'll send them abroad. I think they'll be reluctant to make international calls, so let's make it clear beforehand that we'll only cover their food, lodging, and souvenirs, but we won't reimburse their phone bills..."

"Hehehe, okay! This is the way. It's a bit underhanded, but we're doing a good deed." Wei Qingqing finally laughed.

"It's just that it costs too much money..." Yang Ming said with a pained expression.

"You caused this mess yourself, why are you worried about spending money? As long as the two old folks are alright, we'd be happy even if we had to go bankrupt," Wei Qingqing said, rolling her eyes at Yang Ming.

"You've been rolling your eyes at me all night..." Yang Ming muttered, then added, "Why are you back now? Have you learned how to make mooncakes yet?"

"It's very simple, like making steamed buns. Then you use a mooncake mold to cut out the shape, and then you can bake them in the oven. Aunt Liu is baking them now, it will take a few more minutes before they are ready..." Wei Qingqing said, "Where do you plan to send them on their trip?"

"Hawaii, that's a remote island with no towns or villages around. Let them have fun."

"If you ask me, I'd say we should have all four of our elders come along too. I just feel uneasy about having only a group of elderly people in a foreign country," Wei Qingqing said after thinking for a moment.

"Okay, let Fangfang and Zhang Yang go too. Their four elderly relatives can come along and have fun together." The senior citizen tour group has expanded again.

"Uncle and Aunt, what are you talking about?" Little Bao'er finally spoke. She was terrified when she saw her usually kind and friendly uncle and aunt arguing, but then they started chatting and laughing again, which confused her. Why are adults so fickle? When other kids argue with their friends, they give each other the silent treatment for days.

"Yes! We should also include Xiao Bao'er. We'll let Xiao Bao'er come along too..." Wei Qingqing smiled and pulled Xiao Bao'er into her arms. "Xiao Bao'er, in a few days, your uncle and aunt will organize a trip for all the elderly people in the village. There's the sea, the beach, seashells, and seagulls. It'll be so much fun. You can go too."

"I'm not an old person, I'm a child," Xiao Bao'er said in a clear voice, sitting on Wei Qingqing's lap.

"Won't you look like an old man when you grow a beard?" Wei Qingqing pinched Xiao Bao'er's little nose.

"Mom says girls don't grow beards..."

"We're just pretending, as long as they can't tell..." Wei Qingqing said.

"Are your uncles and aunts going? Is your mom going?"

"Your uncle, aunt, and mom aren't going, but Aunt Fangfang and Uncle Zhang Yang will be going..." Wei Qingqing said.

"Then I won't go..."

"Hehe, little Bao'er, the seashells there are really pretty. Those old grandpas and grandmas will definitely bring them back for their grandchildren. Then all your friends will have them, but you won't..." Yang Ming tempted from the side.

"I... my grandparents don't like me, they definitely won't bring it back for me..." Thinking of her grandparents, Xiao Bao pouted, feeling a little unhappy.

Wei Qingqing glared at Yang Ming, "You really don't know how to talk."

"If Grandpa and Grandma won't take you, then you can go by yourself. If you see something you like, ask Aunt Fangfang to buy it for you. Remember to get one for Uncle, Aunt, and Mom too!"

"Yes!" Xiao Bao nodded emphatically.

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